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Brandywine River Museum Celebrates 40th Anniversary with Special Exhibitions

Exhibitions include N.C. Wyeth’s illustrations for Treasure Island, seen together for the first time in public, a celebration of Howard Pyle, masterpieces by Andrew and Jamie Wyeth and more.

N.C. Wyeth’s Treasure Island, Classic Illustrations for a Classic Tale
September 10 through November 20
2011 is the 100th anniversary of the publication of Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island with illustrations by N.C. Wyeth. The edition was a critical and popular success, established Wyeth among the period’s foremost illustrators, and became the iconic Treasure Island for generations of readers. To mark the anniversary, all 16 dramatic paintings created by Wyeth will be on display together for the first time since they left the artist’s studio a century ago. The exhibition also presents some Treasure Island productions created by the many illustrators, theater and film directors and even digital application designers who have been influenced by Wyeth’s imaginative vision.

Honoring Howard Pyle: Major Works from the Collections
September 17 through November 17
2011 also marks the 100th anniversary of the death of Howard Pyle (1853-1911), a seminal figure in American illustration, renowned for his historical accuracy and ability to instill great drama in his images. A great many of Pyle’s vivid paintings and decorative drawings depicting pirates, Arthurian legends, fairy tales, American history, and allegorical figures will be on view, revealing as always Pyle as a master of his profession.

Inspiring Minds: Howard Pyle as Teacher
September 17 through November 17
During the “Golden Age of Illustration,” Pyle was its most prominent teacher, training more than 150 artists. The exhibition will highlight his teaching methods and his indelible influence on the careers of many major illustrators such as Jessie Willcox Smith, Thornton Oakley, Frank Schoonover, N.C Wyeth and others.

Celebrating Four Decades of Collecting
September 24 through November 20
An especially large selection of works from the permanent collection will be displayed in the galleries. Major landscapes by Asher Durand, William Trost Richards and others represent the natural beauty of the region that has attracted artists here for over 150 years. A select group of portrait and genre paintings by Gilbert Stuart, Benjamin West, Horace Pippin, and others are gems of the collection. The museum’s fine collection of still life and trompe l’oeil paintings feature wonderful examples by William Michael Harnett, John Peto, John Haberle, as well as works in the trompe l’oeil tradition by contemporary artists such as Robert Jackson, Gary Erbe, and Otto Duecker.

Works by Jamie Wyeth have been displayed in the Brandywine River Museum since it opened in 1971. The permanent collection includes works he created throughout his career in a range of subjects and media. These include his memorable and insightful works such as Portrait of Pig (1970) and Draft Age (1965). Also included are landscapes of Maine and Pennsylvania, as well the artist’s important series of drawings and paintings of the dancer Rudolf Nureyev. Works on view by other members of the Wyeth family–Henriette Wyeth, Carolyn Wyeth, Peter Hurd, and John McCoy–reveal each artist’s unique interpretation of nature and the people they knew well.

Masterpieces by Andrew Wyeth from the Collections
September 24 through January 29
This installation presents the museum’s entire superlative collection of works by Andrew Wyeth created during the artist’s 75-year career. These demonstrate Wyeth’s deep attachment to the land and people of Chadds Ford and coastal Maine. Unique to this exhibition is the addition of selected–and rarely seen–studies lent from the Andrew and Betsy Wyeth Collection. These works in pencil and watercolor demonstrate the artist’s close observation of form and his exploration of color and mood.

The Brandywine River Museum is located on U.S. Route 1 in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania. The museum is open daily, except Christmas Day, from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Admission is $10 for adults; $6 for seniors, students and children ages 6 to 12; and free for children under six and members. Free admission on Sunday mornings from 9:30 a.m. to noon, through November 20, 2011. For more information, please call 610-388-2700 or visit www.brandywinemuseum.org.

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